Panthea virginarius - Hodges#9178
Panthea virginarius
This record describes Panthea virginarius (species). Recorded family: Noctuidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.
Identification and Appearance
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Arthropoda
- Class
- Insecta
- Order
- Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
- Superfamily
- Noctuoidea
- Family
- Noctuidae (Owlet Moths)
- Subfamily
- Pantheinae
- Genus
- Panthea
Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.
Habitat and Range
Habitat
coniferous forests, in particular but not confined to Douglas-fir Pseudotsuga menziesii forest at elevations ranging from sea-level to near tree-line
Geographic Range
mainly west and north of the Great Basin, from the coast of southern California northward to the Queen Charlotte Islands of British Columbia and the Alaskan Panhandle, eastward to central California,northern Nevada, Idaho, northwestern Wyoming, western Montana, and southwestern Alberta; a disjunct population is in the Cypress Hills of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Large black and white populations (syn. portlandia ) occur along the coast from central California to southern British Columbia. These are replaced by gray and black populations both farther north and farther south along the coast, and at higher elevations inland. Intermediate populations occur at lower elevations eastward as far as western Montana and extreme southwestern Alberta
Diet and Behavior
Diet: larvae feed on leaves of Douglas-fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii )
About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group
Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Panthea virginarius. Species-specific details appear above.
Group overview
Lepidoptera includes approximately 180,000 described species of butterflies and moths. Moths outnumber butterflies roughly 10:1. The monarch butterfly's eastern population has declined by more than 80% since the mid-1990s, and the western population by over 95% since the 1980s. The IUCN lists the migratory monarch as Vulnerable.
Ecological role of the group
Butterflies and moths are essential indicators of ecosystem health. As caterpillars, they are a primary food source for birds - a single nest of blue tit chicks requires ~10,000 caterpillars. Adult moths pollinate many night-blooming plants.
Economic and practical significance of the group
Lepidoptera are critical pollinators. In Europe, grassland butterfly species have declined by almost 50% since the early 1990s. In the UK, three-quarters of butterflies are in decline. In the U.S., five butterfly species have gone extinct since 1950, with 29 listed as endangered.
Recorded sources for this group: IUCN Red List, Xerces Society, USFWS, PNAS, WWF. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.
Photos of Panthea virginarius - Hodges#9178 (2)
Photo credits: Contributed by Cotinis; Additional contributions by Robin McLeod , Chuck Entz , Randy Hardy , Steve Morris